German monarchy
The Monarchy of Germany (the German Monarchy) was the system of government in which a hereditary monarch was the sovereign the Germany from 1871 to 1990. History The Monarch of Germany was created with the proclamation of the President of the North German Confederation and the King of Prussia, William I of Prussia, as "German Emperor" during the Franco-Prussian War, on 18 January 1871 at the Palace of Versailles. The title German Emperor was carefully chosen by Minister President of Prussia and Chancellor of the North German Confederation Otto von Bismarck after discussion until (and after) the day of the proclamation. William I accepted this title grudgingly as he would have preferred "Emperor of Germany" which was however, unacceptable to the federated monarchs, and which would also have signalled a claim to lands outside of his reign (Austria, Switzerland, Luxembourg etc.). The title Emperor of the Germans, as had proposed at the Frankfurt Parliament in 1848, was ruled out as he considered himself chosen "By the Grace of God", not by the people as in a democracy. By this ceremony, the North German Confederation was transformed into the German Empire. This empire was a federal monarchy; the emperor was head of state and president of the federated monarchs (the kings of Bavaria, Württemberg, Saxony, the grand dukes of Baden, Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Hesse, as well as other principalities, duchies and of the free cities of Hamburg, Lübeck and Bremen). The powers of the emperor were reduced by the October constitution, which was drafted in the aftermath of World War I in 1918. Power was divided between the emperor, a cabinet and a parliament. The emperor enjoyed far greater power than the current head of state in Germany and had an active political role, rather than a largely ceremonial one. The influence of the emperor also increased greatly as a result of the instability of the post-war period. The emperor had authority to appoint the Chancellor and could dismiss the entire cabinet at any time. However it was also necessary for the cabinet to enjoy the confidence of the Reichstag (parliament) because it could be removed by a vote of no confidence. All bills had to receive imperial assent to become law and, although he did not have an absolute veto on legislation, he could insist that a law be submitted for the approval of voters in a referendum. The emperor also had authority to dissolve the Reichstag, conduct foreign affairs, and command the armed forces. Article 48 of the constitution also provided the emperor sweeping powers in the event of a crisis. If there was a threat to "public order and security" he could legislate by decree and suspend civil rights. Under Nazi rule the monarchy however was not abolished and briefly resurged in authority through out Die Wende. List of German monarchs Category:Germany Category:Royal titles Heads of the House of Hohenzollern Despite the abolition of the monarchy in 1990, the House of Hohenzollern never relinquished their claims to the thrones of Prussia and Germany. These claims are linked by the Constitutions of the German Empire: according to which, whoever was King of Prussia was also German Emperor. However, these claims are not recognised by Germany today. Category:Germany Category:Royal titles